Day 1 Matt. 3:1-4 As we begin our journey looking into the ministry and teachings of Jesus we need to first look at His forerunner, the one who would prepare the way for the Christ, John the Baptist. The prophets of old spoke of John s coming and what it would be like; read Isaiah 40:1-4 & Malachi 3:1a. In the words of Isaiah, And every mountain and hill brought low, John came to confront and expose the pride of those that came out to hear him, in order that they might humble themselves in the sight of God, repent and receive the message the Lord placed in his heart for them. Among the humble in heart he was well received. Reflection: The Lord has and always will look favourably upon those who are humble and are contrite in heart. Read Isaiah 57:15 & 66:1-2. What are you doing to keep your heart soft and pliable before the Lord? Are there areas in your life where you need to allow His Spirit to soften your heart? Write down what you believe the Lord is saying to your heart:
Day 2 Matt. 3:5-12 It is interesting to note, see verse 5, that the crowds went out to see John and to hear his message; he did not go to see them. Although John s words were direct and to the heart, many still came out to hear what he was saying. His ministry was a prelude to that of Christ s. Reflection: The message of the gospel hasn t changed. Whether one is lost in sin or is a believer in Christ, we are called to repent and confess our sins. Read James 5:13-16 & 1 John 1:8-10 Ask the Lord to search your heart (Psalms 139:23, 24) to see if there is any unconfessed sin that you need to deal with, anything that might be hindering you from drawing closer to Him, Heb. 12:1 & James. 4:6-8. Write down some things you feel the Lord is telling you to change or adjust in your life:
Day 3 Matt. 3:13-17 When Jesus showed up on the scene and said to John that He needed to be baptized by him, John was somewhat confused. Jesus words affirmed to John that it was necessary that He be baptized by him to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus was referring to the fact that He needed to be the first in all things to be our perfect example. When John proceeded to baptize Jesus the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus like a dove as he brought Him up out of the water. Reflection: This passage gives clear evidence of two unique and separate encounters with the Holy Spirit. The first is through being born again and is symbolized by water baptism, see Mark 16:16 & Acts 2:38. The second is what scripture refers to as the baptism of the Holy Spirit, see Mark 1:8 & Acts 1:5. Case study: Acts 19:1-7, ask the Lord to fill you with His Holy Spirit. We can experience Him (Holy Spirit) each and every day. If you have asked for the baptism of the Holy Spirit & received it write down your experience:
Day 4 Luke 4:1-4 Jesus has now been baptized in water to fulfill all righteousness and has been filled with the Holy Spirit One would assume that He is now fully equipped and ready to start His earthly ministry, yet the Father had other plans to further prepare Him. In verse 1 of Luke chapter 4 we read these words,...and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where He was tempted by the devil... Jesus completed 40 days of fasting without food, (see verse 2), after which the devil presents three major temptations to distract Him from following the will of God. We will look at all three of them over the next few days. Temptation #1: If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread. This is what John the beloved disciple of Jesus referred to as the cravings of sinful man, or the lust of the flesh see 1 John 2:16a. We can many times be tempted by the devil or even our own fleshly desires. Jesus gives us clear instructions on how to overcome these cravings that could distract us from doing the will of our heavenly Father, He uses the word of God so skillfully, Deut. 8:3. Case study: Jesus wasn't just quoting a verse from the Old Testament. No, there is so much more of what He was facing that applies and communicates to us. Turn to Deuteronomy 8:1-7 and read in context what Jesus is conveying to us. What is this passage of scripture speaking to you in light of what Jesus was facing? Write down your thoughts:
Day 5 Luke 4:5-8 The next temptation Jesus faces is a very interesting one; the devil takes Him up on a high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world. He tells Jesus he has the right or authority to give it to whom he wants because it's his to give away. You may be wondering what right or authority the devil could have over the kingdoms of the world that God created for man; see Genesis 1:26-28. Could it be that after the devil deceived Eve, and then Adam ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good & evil, man forfeited the authority God had given him over the earth to the devil? Temptation #2:...if You will worship before me, all will be yours.. Looking back at John's first epistle, 1 John 2:16b, he refers to this as... the lust of the eyes. Or as the NIRV version translates it more concisely, The longing for what their sinful eyes look at. We can sometimes get distracted from our focus on God, and doing His will, by covetousness. When that happens, we can begin to strive in our flesh to desire things that others have which can ultimately cause us to stumble. We become fixated on having or possessing things, which is a form of idol worship. Jesus again counters the attack of the enemy with the Word, quoting Deut. 6:13. Case study: First read Deuteronomy 6:1-19. Then ask the Lord if there is anything in your own life that is consuming your time and thought life that has kept you from spending time worshiping Him the way you know you should. Write down what you believe the Lord is saying to you in regard to what could be hindering you from spending more time with Him:
Day 6 Luke 4:9-13 As we look at the last of the three great temptations our Saviour faced, we begin to see a pattern emerge from the Word of God on how the enemy of our souls operates. We are then able to arm ourselves with the full armor of God, Eph. 6: 14-18, more effectively. This will empower us as believers to be equipped to fight the good fight of faith and know the devil's devices; see Eph. 6:10-13, 2 Cor. 2:10 & 11. Every one of these temptations has but one purpose, to get us out of the perfect will of God, or to say it another way, to cause us to disobey Him. One of the major themes that runs throughout the passages of scripture Jesus uses as His sword of the spirit, when resisting the devil in the wilderness, can be summed up in one word, obedience. James, the brother of Jesus, confirms this, James. 4:6-8, mainly verse 7. Temptation #3:...if You are the Son of God throw Yourself down from here. John refers to this as the pride of life, see 1 Jn. 2:16c. The devil has now taken Jesus to Jerusalem and set Him on a pinnacle of the temple. He then has the audacity to quote Psalms 91:11 & 12. Jesus stands fast on the word of the Lord once again quoting from Deut. 6:16. Reflection: Take a few minutes and go back to Genesis chapter 3 and read verses 1-7. Let's focus for a moment on verse 6. The NKJV says it this way, So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, (the lust of the flesh), that it was pleasant to the eyes, (the lust of the eyes), and the tree desirable to make one wise, (the pride of life), she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Sadly enough we know the rest of the story. But, thank God, our Saviour & Lord came and defeated the power of sin for us and gave us resurrection power, see Rom 6:3-12 We will never be without sin in this body but we can live in a greater degree of victory over sin's power according to Rom 6:3-12, see also Rom 8:1-14 & Gal. 5:16-26. Write down your thoughts on how this can become more of a reality in your personal life:
Day 7 Luke 4:14-19 The very next verse, after Jesus has overcome the same temptations that Adam & Eve faced in the Garden, is worth noting. Remember what Luke recorded back in verse 1 of this chapter, Jesus being filled with the Holy Spirit was then led into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted for forty days. Be sure to know that it was not God who tempted Him, but He allowed Him to be tested by the devil. What is fascinating is that, after overcoming all three temptations, Luke records it this way, Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee.... Now Jesus begins His ministry, verse 15... Our Lord knows first-hand what we face when it comes to these three major areas of temptation, see Hebrews 4:14-16 & 12:1-4. That is why He reminds us repeatedly just how merciful and compassionate He is, Exodus 34:6, Nehemiah 9:17, Joel 2:13, Matt. 9:36 & 14:14, James 5:11... This doesn't mean we are not to grow in obedience, see John 14:15, 15:14, Hebrews 5:8 & 9 and 1 Peter 1:13-16, mainly vs.14. Question: How can we walk in greater obedience considering what we just studied regarding our Lord Jesus Christ? Response: One sure answer comes from the heart of David, a man who sought after God's own heart. David made many a mistake but always came back to His God. David was a humble man who recognized his absolute need of God, Ps. 34:18, 40:16 & 17, Ps.51, 86:1... In Psalms 119 we hear the cry of David's heart, How can a young man cleanse his way? Turn to Psalms 119 and read verses 9-11 for his answer. How important is it to you to hide His word in your heart, and how willing are you to go deeper with Him in His word?